


I’ll come up with a title later later

by azbear



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Non-Sexual Age Play, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, caregiver squip, characters will be added, little rich
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-30
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-03-09 16:59:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13485855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azbear/pseuds/azbear
Summary: Richard Goranski’s life has turned to shit since his mom left. His dad is a neglectful asshole and his brother is in Florida. People at school either ignore him or bully him. He doesn’t have any friends.Eventually, he gets a squip and it helps him to become cool.The squip notices that Rich is constantly stressed out and anxious and decides to try to find a healthy coping mechanism for him. It eventually lands on age regression.





	1. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In 19th century Russia we write letters  
> Rich's life sucks, somebody tells him to write letters to some random guy and one day they write him back  
> Warning: suicide mention

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it has begun

Dear Friend,

This is my first day of high school. I’m  _ really  _ looking forward to it.

Not.

I spent all of elementary school  _ and  _ middle school completely invisible. The only time somebody talked to me was if the teacher paired us up to do some type of project together. I usually do all of my school work alone, but sometimes having a partner is unavoidable.

Wow, I can’t wait to go through another four years of school with no friends. My older brother says we’re friends, but we’re not. We’re brothers. He’s never here anyway.

Robin is 8 years older than me and he goes to college in  _ Florida. _ Meanwhile, I’m stuck in New Jersey with our asshole dad. He wasn’t always an asshole, though! He actually used to be a really good dad! He barbequed all the time, played with my brother and I, supported us with whatever we wanted to do. But then...Mom fell into a depression. She didn’t do anything to herself...well, besides ruin her marriage. 

She managed to pull herself out of bed one day, decorate her face like a damn cake, put on a slutty dress,  and she went out to a club. After a few drinks, she went home with some random guy. Then she did it again the next day. And the next. And the next….

Finally, Dad found a pregnancy test (positive) in the bathroom and confronted her. They hadn’t had sex in years, 

They got divorced.

This was 3 year ago. Dad and I just moved here in the middle of my 8th grade year. I thought it would be good…. Maybe I’d finally make a friend!

Nope.

I tried to talk to some kid and he pushed me. I landed on my wrist and sprained it. That was fun. So, I decided to be invisible for the rest of that year and try again in high school. Guess we’ll see what happens. Ignore the beginning of this letter. I’m going to try to make a friend today. I’ll let you know how it plays out.

Richard Goranski

 

Dear Friend, 

I hate high school more than literally anything. Even more than my fucking lisp! I don’t understand why kids are such assholes. I’ve been trying to make friends in school, but:

  * Three (3) people: pushed/tripped me
  * Eight (8) people: made fun of my lisp
  * Five (5) people knocked my books out of my hands.



And that’s just from today. Usually my days are a lot worse, but today wasn’t so bad….

I hate those stupid assholes. Being invisible is better than this. At least that way I don’t end up with a bloody nose!

I’m not talking to anyone in this school ever again. I’ll come up with some excuse when doing partner activities.

Richard Goranski

 

Dear Friend, 

Somehow school has gotten worse each quarter. 

One of my teachers forced me to work in a group. No matter what I said, she absolutely would _not_ let me work alone. So, grudgingly, I did a project with 3 girls and some dude. I don’t remember their names and I don’t remember what the project was about.

This happened about a month ago and I’ve blocked it all out of my mind.

At the time, it was actually a good thing that I had been paired up with them. I was invited to a party! For the first time in my life! I even got one of the girls’ phone number! (It’s since been deleted, but it was exciting at the time.)

That girl...she ruined my life. I can never talk to anyone again after that. I’ll never have a friend because of her.

I texted her one night, right? I wanted to know what the homework was. (I’m a nerd, I KNOW.) Well, she told me the homework and then...things kind of escalated. I won’t go into detail, but we started sexting. 

It wasn’t great, but it was okay…ish...no, it fucking sucked. Finally, she just gave up on me and asked me to send her pictures. I wasn’t exactly comfortable doing it, but I did because she was talking to me. A girl was talking to me! I regret it.

Finally, the time for the party arrived. It was great! I had beer (not that it was the first time or anything, hello, alcoholic father here), danced (poorly), and I even felt some girl’s boobs! (I fell on her and accidentally grabbed her boob. I apologized profusely afterwards.)

A few hours into the party, somebody turned on the projector. Screenshots of my conversation with the girl lit up the wall. (My contact name was  _ Gullible _ ). At the end of my failed attempts at sexting...my pictures. Everybody was either drunk or high off their ass. Only 3 people remembered the next day and they couldn’t prove it was real. I broke the flashdrive and the girl’s phone. Everybody was laughing and making fun of me….

The three people who remembered the next day started telling everybody what had happened. (Thank god they didn’t know my name or face, but it was still shitty.)

Sure, nobody could prove it was me, nobody could prove that it even happened, but I live with the knowledge...with the shame…that it happened.

I don’t want to go to school anymore. I don’t want to...anything anymore….

Richard Goranski

 

Dear Richard Goranski,

Sounds like you need a squip. Meet me at Payless, Friday night, 7:30. Bring $400. This will change your life.

Your writing buddy


	2. Chapter 1: The Squip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Squip time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi. please let me know if you like this and i'll continue it c: i have a few more chapters written and have one half written that i've just been too lazy to actually finish writing (whoops)  
> ALSO: thanks to mcschnuggles on tumblr--she got me into writing this and she pre-reads all these chapters and gives feedback and just thanks <3

_ I was hopeless, hopeless, I was helpless, helpless _ _   
_ _ Every time I'd walk the hallway, I would trip  _ _   
_ _ I was stagnant and idle _ _   
_ _ I was so suicidal _ _   
_ "Richard Goranski. Welcome to your Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor. Your Squip."   
Richard froze. He turned towards the new voice and dropped the bottle of pills he held when he saw Jonathan Groff standing in front of him. "Y-you...it worked?"   
"Yes. And I can see I will have a lot of work to do with you." Richard shrunk in on himself. "That's not bad, though. This is fine. I'm going to help you become cool, like you want."   
"Okay.... You look like Jonathan Groff."   
"Yes. You can set me to look like anybody you would like me to."   
"...Even Evil Kermit?"   
The Squip's appearance changed right in front of Richard's eyes. "I suppose so."   
Richard giggled. Seeing such an exasperated look on evil kermit sent Richard into hysterics until he fell back on his bed.   
"Are you quite finished?"   
Richard nodded, out of breath. He sat up and bit his lip to keep from laughing again and risk waking up his dad.   
" __ Good.  We'll have a lot of work to do, so—" The squip stopped when he saw the bottle of pills Richard had dropped. "why don't you go to bed? We'll get started in the morning."   
"Okay...." Richard stood off his bed and began to get ready for bed. Squip watched to make sure Richard didn't do anything stupid and got to sleep safely. Evil Kermit stayed positioned next to Richard's bed throughout the night, monitoring his dreams.

_ Richard walked through his school's hallways, making himself as small as possible. Yet he was still tripped three times, had his books knocked out of his hands four times, and was shoved into a locker twice.  _ _   
_ _ Richard slammed his hands against the locker, crying for someone, anyone to open it. The locker opened and he flew out, landing on his face. Richard opened his eyes and noticed everything around him growing. No...he was  _ shrinking _. Richard's breathing picked up and he started running as people walked through the halls, some people deliberately trying to step on him or kick him. _

Richard awoke to a shock up his spine. "Ow!" He cried. "What the hell was that?!"   
"Spinal stimulation. You were having a nightmare."   
"So you  _ shocked  _ me?!"   
"Yes. It was the only way I could wake you up."   
"You couldn't stimulate just  _ shaking  _ me? Or like yell or something? That was not a fun way to wake up!"   
"I apologize. I suppose I could have done something else. But that was the only way I could think of to wake you up."   
"What if I didn't even  _ want  _ to wake up?" Richard mumbled.   
Evil Kermit climbed onto Richard's bed and sat across from him. "You are suicidal, Richard. You have been for quite some time."   
"Oh, thank you, Captain Obvious! I wanted you to tell me how to be cool, not tell me shit I already know!" Richard rolled out of bed and stood in front of his window, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You are also experiencing mood swings."   
Richard turned on his heel and glared at the stupid frog on his bed. The Squip stood in front of Richard on his desk.   
"I am going to help you, Richard. All you have to do is listen to me and do what I tell you to do."   
"What if I don't want to?" Richard stomped his foot, looking like a four-year old. The dinosaur pajamas he wore didn't help with him looking like a child.   
"Well, technically you don't  _ have _ to do anything, though I would recommend you do." Richard's face smoothed out as his anger dissipated. "Before we get you ready for school, there are some things you should know: nobody else besides you can hear or see me, so don't talk to me out loud unless we're alone. Just think at me."   
"Like X-Men?"   
"Sure, yes. Try it out."   
Richard's face scrunched up and his tongue stuck out the side of his mouth.  _ Am I doing it right? _ _   
_ "You don't need to make faces like that, but yes, you're doing it right, Richard. Second, like I said, I would recommend you do what I tell you to, but you don't necessarily have to. If you  _ really  _ don't want to do something I say, tell me and I'll figure something else out. Finally, if you would ever like some 'alone time,' you can ask me to go away and you can ask for me back at any time. Right now, though, that will not work. You are on suicide watch."   
"I-what?!" Richard demanded. "No! I refuse to be put on  _ suicide watch  _ by a stupid frog!"   
"I am a supercomputer, Richard, I merely  _ look  _ like a stupid frog, because that is what you wanted."   
"Well—now I want you to go away! I don't want a Squip anymore!"   
"I told you that would not work right now, Richard. Now, why don't you go take a shower and get dressed?"   
"Fuck off!" Richard climbed back into bed and pulled his blanket over his head.   
"Richard, you can't miss school. It’s almost the end of the year."   
Richard sat up in bed, teeth clenched as he glared at his squip. "Don't you worry about me being fucking suicidal! Just tell me how to be cool! And if I tell you to leave me alone, go the fuck away! Got it?”   
The squip hummed. Rich knew he—it? wouldn't leave him alone if he told it to, but that's honestly probably for the best. He doesn't know what would happen to him if he was ever left alone....   
"Okay. So tell me how to be cool."   
"First, go shower. It will help you feel better."   
Richard rolled his eyes and walked to the bathroom. "Are you trying to tell me I smell?"   
"I am a computer, Richard; I am incapable of smelling anything. Which is probably for the best, considering you haven't showered in a week and a half."   
Richard stuck his tongue out at the squip.   
Richard stood in front of his closet in a towel, waiting for his squip to tell him what to wear.   
"We'll have to go clothes shopping after school," Squip commented. "For now, shorts and a plain black tank top will be fine."   
Richard got dressed and moved his damp hair out of his eyes before grabbing his spider-man backpack.   
"...We'll have to do more than clothes shopping."   
"Shut up," Richard mumbled. "Stupid frog."   
If a computer could be amused, the squip was certainly amused.   
"You want to be cool, correct? Start going by  _ Rich _ ."   
"Rich?"   
"Correct."   
Rich shrugged. "At least you didn't say  _ Dick. _ "   
"That would just get you made fun of. That's not the goal here."   
"That's the  _ opposite _ of the goal, you stupid frog!"   
Rich felt a shock travel up his spine. "Ow! Quit it!"   
"You have a lisp."   
Rich's face heated up. "Yeah.... So what?"   
"We're going to try to get rid of it. Every time you mispronounce a word, I will shock you."   
"Can you  __ not? It hurts!"   
Evil Kermit tapped his fingers against his chin. "I suppose you could do with a bit of muscle. Fine. I will tally up every time you mispronounce a word and that's how many push-ups you will do."   
Rich groaned. His teachers always pick on him and make him read the paragraph that would be hardest for him. He doesn't talk to anyone unless he's forced to work with a partner, but he knows Squip will be efficient in keeping track of all his mispronunciations.   
"You're making me want to die more than I did before I got you."   
"You won't be saying that when you have friends and girls who want to date you swarming around you."   
"We'll see about that, froggy."


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rich has his squip in school. He hasn't quite got the hang of talking to it in his head. Whoops.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol i'm updating this in statistics class (i just started all new classes today And i HATE IT i wanna die thanks)  
> but here, have an update while i go suffer   
> (btw i know this is kinda short, the next 2 chapters are longer than this, will try to update soon)  
> k enjoy, have a wonderful day my dudes

Rich had had his squip for 4 days and his life wasn't getting any better.

The school year was coming to an end—only one more week!—so his squip decided they would work on improving his life over the summer. They would completely reinvent him and turn him into a totally new person. In the meantime, the squip was working on helping him with his depression.

"You are not hated; people simply don't know you yet. You'll never have to suffer again with me."

Well, the squip tried, but how much can a computer really help when it comes to things like depression? How much can a computer help with being liked and making friends? Was this a waste of money?  _Every damn penny he's saved since he was 9 years old.... If he doesn't make at least one friend with this thing, he's going to be PISSED. He's going to be more than pissed.... He's going to—_

Rich yelped as he felt a shock travel up his spine. He flushed and turned back to his books when people turned to look at him.

_Why must you always do that?_

"I can hear your thoughts, Richard. I am going to help you and you're going to have plenty of friends. You need to stop being so pessimistic and miserable all the time!"

_I can't help it! That's just how I am! Stop shocking me all the time! That's not gonna help me being so miserable, stupid._

"I advise you to not call the one who's trying to help you 'stupid.'"

"Ah, shut up," Rich rolled his eyes.

"Pardon me, Mr. Goranski? If you have a problem with my teaching, you can march your butt down to discipline!"

Crap.... Rich hadn't realized he spoke out loud! "No, I'm sorry, ma'am. I was just daydreaming...."

"So you think my class is boring?"

Rich opened his mouth to speak, but his squip cut him off with what felt like a pinch to his thigh. "Repeat after me: no, ma'am, I love this class! In fact, it's my favorite class I've taken all year. I apologize; I haven't been getting much sleep lately because I've been up all night, studying. Finals are coming up, you know? I want to do good. Sorry again, ma'am. I'll pay better attention in class."

The teacher huffed. "You'd better. If this happens again you  _will_ be sent to discipline. Try to get some more sleep tonight, Richard."

"Yes, ma'am."

Rich sunk down in his seat as the teacher resumed their lesson about circles or whatever they've been doing in geometry. He recently stopped caring about school, just deciding to either wing it or cheat on his tests. He just can't bring himself to care, even in French, which he used to love! His mom used to sing to him in French when he was a baby....

Rich swiped at his eyes with his fist and pushed the thought of his mom down far. She left. It's been three years. Get over it, already.

"Don't be so harsh with yourself," the squip scolded gently, sitting on Rich's desk. "You're allowed to be hurt and upset that she left you."

Rich sniffed.  _I just want to forget...._

"If you truly want that...I can block her out of your mind."

_Please...._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also   
> i've lived in new jersey my whole life so i'm basing the mall and school and everything off what i know, but north and south jersey is rly different and my high school is just stupid and weird but that's what i know so. okay au revoir


	4. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rich gets a makeover~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m sorry for not updating in so long rip. tbh okay so ch 4 is written and i will post it right after this but like i got stuck on where to go after ch 4 then i just forgot about this for a while oops.   
> also i’m so hecking excited for will roland in bmc!! if only i could go to ny c’: (i literally live in new jersey, which if you don’t know is right beneath new york... but alas, i have no drivers license or money)  
> sorry for ranting, this should be on my ranting tumblr, but too late now ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

Squip noticed that after he blocked Rich's mom from his mind, he's been doing a lot better. He's still depressed and suicidal, but he smiles a bit more and gets out of bed without the squip forcing him to.

School has been over for a week and Rich has been working out practically nonstop. His self-confidence has improved since he lost some weight and started putting on muscle. However, Squip has had to take over more than a few times to make Rich shower, sleep, and eat. As much as the squip tries to teach Rich about self care, the boy just doesn't give a shit. He'd rather work himself until he passes out than take a break to eat a banana. _And he calls_ me _stupid...._

A few weeks into summer vacation the squip took Rich out shopping like it had promised. Rich had managed to take some money from his dad's wallet—money he should be spending on Rich anyway and not his alcohol addiction. He probably won't even notice it's gone.

The squip took Rich to a hairdresser first. Rich sat nervously in the waiting area.

_I've never gotten a haircut without my brother or someone with me...._

"Yes, I can tell you haven't gotten a haircut in three years."

_Shut up, stupid frog. I don't like strangers with pointy objects near my head!_

"It will be okay, Rich. You won't get hurt. I'll make sure."

"Rich? You can come sit over here."

Rich ran his hand through his long, brown hair one last time before sitting in the chair. He really does need a haircut, he realized as he moved his bangs away from his eyes.

The squip briefly took control over one of his hands to flip through a magazine and show the hairdresser what kind of haircut to give Rich.

The squip saw that Rich was nervous and decided to start talking to him to keep his mind off it, since the hairdresser didn't seem to give a shit. "Next, we're going to get you some contacts and then go clothes shopping."

_Contacts? But why can't I just wear my glasses? My aunt's eye swelled shut when she used contacts once!_

"It was probably just the brand. You'll be fine. I'll make sure of it."

If you're sure.... People have called Rich a 'four-eyed freak' before, so maybe it would be a good idea to wear contacts.... He's still nervous, though.

"I think we'll get you some tank tops and shorts," Squip mused. "You can show off your new muscles."

Rich's face heated up. _I don't see what's wrong with what I wear now...._

"Oh no, I dont see anything wrong either," evil kermit deadpanned, looking exasperated. Rich had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. (That would be especially bad considering there's a pair of scissors right next to his ear, never mind that he's in public and it would look like he's laughing at nothing.)

"Your current wardrobe is extremely baggy. You only ever wear jeans or sweatpants with t-shirts that have weird cartoons and weird sayings on them! And you rarely ever wash your clothes, so there are permanent stains on everything. You are going to wash your new clothes."

Rich's face fell. Weird? He always liked his silly t-shirts.... He and his brother used to try to one-up each other in buying each other funny t-shirts for Christmas and birthdays....

"You can wear whatever you want at home and when working out, but when you go out in public, wear the new clothes we get you today," the squip advised gently.

Rich agreed.

"Alright, you're all done!" The hairdresser smiled.

Rich looked at his new haircut. Hmm. He likes the shaved sides, but it'll be annoying to do the quiff part everyday. Maybe he can just let his squip take over and do that for him....

"Actually," the squip said, indicating for Rich to repeat his words, "I was wondering if you dye hair?" Rich's breath caught in his chest, but nevertheless, he repeated the words obediently.

"We sure do! You wanna dye it?"

"Yeah! I was thinking of getting a streak of color right here." The squip guided Rich's hand to point at his new haircut. "Maybe red? Or blue? What do you think would be best?"

"Hmm.... I think red would be nice! Are you sure you want to dye it though?"

_I don't know! I'm scared!_

"It will be cool, Rich. We can hang out at the mall soon and you'll see. Tell her 'yes.'"

"Okay. Let's do it!"

———

Rich walked around a JC Penny's, grumpily. His squip led him around and downloaded images of each clothing item to his brain so he could still provide his input even though he could barely see. His contacts were irritating his eyes and making everything blurry, but his squip and the eye doctor both assured him that was fine and he would get used to it.

 _I wanna go home_ , Rich complained.

"Going home early won't make any difference to your eyes. You have to get used to the contacts for a while."

Rich groaned dramatically. _I'm tired! And hungry!_

"And who's fault is that? You never eat or sleep when I tell you to."

_Can't you just make me?_

"I can, but you don't like when I do that, so I try to avoid it as much as possible."

Rich frowned. His squip actually cares enough to not do stuff he doesn't like? It cared enough to put him on suicide watch too.... But it's a computer...computers can't care about someone. Right?

_Well...I give you permission to make me sleep if I ignore you about it for over an hour. Because I am EXHAUSTED._

"I would prefer it if you would just go to sleep when I tell you so you start learning to take care of yourself, but I'll keep that in mind. What do you think of these pants?"

_Camouflage? I'm already invisible to everyone!_

Rich smirked when he saw how annoyed his squip was with him. "Put them in the basket. Let's go."

 _We're going home now?!_ Rich seemed excited, but he deflated when his squip said, "no, we're going to go shoe shopping."

Rich whined, but allowed his squip to drag him around until his feet felt numb and he was sure his stomach was trying to eat itself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also just bc i thought of it while italicizing everything: rich’s aunt’s eye swelling shut with contacts actually happens to my mom (idk if it was the brand or just contacts in general, i don’t think my mom knows either) but yeah i’m terrified to even try contacts because of that. glasses aren’t that bad though (and i’m blind af. without glasses i literally can’t see 3 feet ahead of me. fun factoid about me. k i’m gonna get ch 4 now, i’ll probably rant more there rip)


	5. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: mention/kinda panic attack but not really?  
> YEET  
> Rich goes to the mall ft little rich. plus Michael (less relevant) and Jeremy (slightly more relevant)  
> me @ Rich’s squip: how. bitch HOW is bullying gonna help? .-.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m actually listening to bmc rn and i’m having a great time since my dad unblocked the internet (long story short: he’s a jerk)  
> but as i stated in chapter 3 notes: i literally have no idea what to do now. like i have a little ant-sized idea that’s on life support but still barely alive and isn’t getting any better.   
> if you have any ideas feel free to share bc i suck ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯  
> i will try to heal/develop the dead ant idea though probably at work when i’m bored. sounds more productive than singing stupid songs to myself (i work at mcdonald’s, it’s boring)

July came around. Rich was doing a lot better in his squip's opinion. Rich couldn't see a difference in himself and he didn't have a physical person around to notice a difference.

The squip has had to take control a few times to make Rich sleep or eat, but Rich slowly began to learn and now he goes to sleep before the squip even tells him to. Most of the time, anyway.

Though Rich has been doing better, he's extremely stressed. He's 5 feet 4 inches of pure stress. He's constantly tense and never relaxes. The squip has to try to find a way for Rich to relieve his stress. Punching bags don't work; Rich nearly broke his hand once using a punching bag when he was too stressed. Writing doesn't work because Rich is afraid of being called a girl for keeping a diary (not that the squip would let anyone find it, but Rich is still scared). Singing doesn't work; Rich hates it because of his lisp. Talking to the squip as if it's a therapist doesn't work; Rich thinks therapists are bullshit. The squip will have to find something else.... It's been considering age regression, but it knows Rich would hate being treated like a child.

The squip was also considering taking Rich off suicide watch. Rich has truly been doing a lot better than he had been before getting his squip. He hasn't thought about suicide or hurting himself in 6 days now. That's not quite long enough to be off suicide watch, but he's getting there. The squip wouldn't tell him that, though. It knows Rich would just get angry at the mention of his being on suicide watch and it would remind him of all the reasons he'd thought about hurting or killing himself. The squip doesn't want Rich to have to remember that.

"I'm bored!" Rich complained. He laid on his back in bed, throwing a ball at the wall, trying (and failing) to catch it as it bounced off the wall. "I'm tired of working out everyday, I don't wanna watch any TV or movies, what do I do?"

Squip sighed. "I've suggested going out multiple times, but you've always said no."

"I don't have any friends! I don't wanna just go out by myself!"

"Maybe you could make one if you go out. You're sure as hell not going to make any friends if you just stay in your room all day!"

"Fine! Let's go out! I'm so bored, I don't even care about being by myself at this point!"

Rich threw himself out of bed, tripping over a dirty shirt on the floor and causing the squip to let out a long sigh. Rich crossed his arms as he stood in front of his dresser. "What do I wear?"

"Try to pick something out by yourself. I'll help if it's a bad outfit."

Rich scoffed. "Rude! I can dress myself! I've been doing it for 8 years!"

"I can tell. Okay, wear the black shorts and—"

Rich grabbed the clothes his squip told him to wear and pulled them on. Rich slipped his shoes on and then they were off.

———

 _I'm hungry!_ Rich complained, fighting a pout off his face.

"Okay," the squip relented. They'd been walking around the mall for about an hour and Rich didn't have breakfast that morning (Rich doesn't know how to cook and he's afraid to let his squip take control over him when it comes to pointy objects or fire). "Let's go to the food court. You can get anything you want since you've been being good."

Rich scoffed. _You make it sound like I'm a dog! ...Do you think of me as your pet dog?_

The squip hummed in thought. "There are certain similarities between you and a dog, I suppose."

_Oh shut up, you stupid frog!_

Rich dug his fingernails into his hips to avoid crossing his arms like a child.

Squip rolled its eyes. "Go get some food. Something filling unless you plan on ordering something tonight. We'll have to go food shopping tomorrow."

Rich nodded as he walked to a line for one of the Chinese places—luckily, he had his earbuds in, so he made nodding at his squip look like he was nodding along to the music that wasn't actually playing.

After eating some mediocre general tsos chicken, Rich was forced to walk around the mall again. He hadn't made a friend yet. He barely even saw any teenagers there and the ones he _did_ see were all complete assholes and he refused to talk to them.

 _They hurt me.... They were jerks to me last year,_ Rich explained.

"They'll be sorry for doing that when they see how cool you are."

_When will I be cool? Because I've had you for almost a month and I'm still a loser._

"You have to interact with your peers for them to realize and spread around that you're cool. You haven't talked to anyone besides me all summer. And there's nobody here that's good for you to talk to."

Rich sighed dramatically as he walked past GameStop. He saw two teenagers walk out of the store. He vaguely recognized them. Their names are like...Marvin and Justin or something like that?

They're best friends. And also complete losers. He had environmental science with Max last year. Josh always waited outside the door for him and the two of them would immediately launch into conversation about some video game or movie. Anytime Rich heard a snippet of their conversation, they were talking about something he likes. He wanted to talk to them, but was afraid they would be mean to him too or would think he's stupid or—

"I have an idea."

 _What is it?_ Rich wondered as he chewed on his straw. He had long since finished his milkshake, but he likes chewing on things.

The squip stimulated the feeling of being pinched until he stopped chewing on his straw and threw the cup out. _That hurt!_

"Would you rather me go back to shocking you?"

_No! Just tell me your idea, would you?_

"See that kid over there? His friend just walked into Spencer's."

Rich looked over at J...ames? He was walking around in circles, waiting for his friend.

"Bump onto him, then turn around and start yelling and shoving him."

Rich frowned. _But why? He and his friend are pretty cool.... And I don't wanna be a bully! I know how it feels to be bullied and it sucks!_

"Okay. It was just an idea. I thought it would be the easiest way to get you to be known among your peers and then you could pick some people to get acquainted with. I'll think of something else." Maybe Rich could even get some of his stress and anger out, though _bullying_ may not be an ideal way to accomplish that.... But Rich doesn't want to, so that idea flew right out of the squip's database.

Rich bit his lip. He really doesn't want to bully people.... He knows it fucking sucks, especially when somebody just decides to start picking on you for no apparent reason. It's even worse if you don't have somebody to talk to, but this kid obviously has his friend. Though...Rich also wants friends and he wants to get friends as easily as possible....

_Why can't I just talk to them and be friends with them?_

"They're not good for you," the squip explained. "They would cause you to get picked on even worse when you go back to school. We'll find you better friends in a way that doesn't involve bullying these kids."

Rich doesn't know how bullying that kid would eventually make him friends, but if the squip thinks it will work, surely it must.... Hopefully....

_Okay, just tell me what to say._

Rich swallowed thickly and walked toward the kid. As he got closer, he saw a tag protruding from the back of his pants; the tag read 'Jeremy Heere.' That must be his name.

Rich bumped his shoulder into Jeremy's side and nearly fell on his face. Luckily, the squip helped him to make a smooth recovery and he turned towards Jeremy, putting every last angry feeling he'd repressed over the years into his face.

"Watch where you're going tall-ass!"

"I-I-shit-I'm so s—" Jeremy tried to say. Rich's chest constricted, but he kept his face hard. This kid has a stutter. _Please don't make me make fun of his speech_ , he begged his squip. It would be awful if he, a kid with a lisp (though he's been hiding it, he still has it), were to make fun of another kid's speech.

"Shut up! What, do you need your boyfriend here to give you a piggyback ride and keep you out of everybody's way?! Or maybe you need your mom to sew you to the wall like she sewed your name on your underpants?!" Rich grabbed the tag sticking out of Jeremy's pants and unintentionally gave him a wedgie. Rich cringed inwardly. He's gotten more than a few of those during his 14 years—they suck.

Jeremy squeaked and tried to get away.

" _Don't_ run away from me, tall-ass! You leave when I say you can leave!" The squip told Rich to tug a little more and then push Jeremy to the floor. He did. "Watch where you're going next time. And make sure your boyfriend knows to stay out of my way too!"

Rich finally walked away from Jeremy, away from one of the worst encounters of his life. As soon as he stepped into the elevator, he burst into tears.

"That was horrible!" He cried into his hands. "I shouldn't have done that! I-I-I'm a horrible person!"

Rich's right side felt warm, as if he was being hugged. The squip must be trying to comfort him.

"You're not a horrible person," the squip soothed. "I know that was hard, but you did a good job. Some other kids had arrived and watched you. One of them looked very impressed. This is the start of something good for you, Rich."

"How is bullying people good?! Especially when I used to get bullied! I can't-I—"

"Rich, you are about to experience a panic attack. I'm going to try my best to prevent that and get you home. Will you allow me to take control over your body? You'll have control back as soon as I get you to your room."

Rich's heart pounded against his chest. Crocodile tears poured down his face like Niagara Falls. Rich nodded.

The squip knows Rich will be pissed if he finds out about this, but this is the best thing the squip can think of right now. Age regression could really help Rich right now. The squip forced Rich into a younger mindset—about 2 or 3 years old would probably be good in it's opinion. It will keep a close eye on Rich and if this really does help him, it'll bring it up to him another day. Otherwise, the squip will block what's about to happen from his mind.

Instantly, Rich's mind felt much simpler. The first thing he thought was _I want cuddles._ The squip did its best to hug Rich. _I wanna go home and sleep!_

"We're going right now, Rich," Squip promised. The elevator doors opened and the squip wiped the tears from Rich's eyes. "We'll go home and you can take a nice nap. Maybe you can watch a movie later; does that sound nice?"

_Can we watch Lady and the Tramp?_

"We can watch whatever you want to. But first you need a nap."

Rich's lower lip trembled. He's really sleepy but now he wants to watch a movie!

"Shh, it's okay," the squip cooed. "Let's get you home now."

Rich's ears filled with music—lullabies. He hummed, finally calming down. His shoulders sagged. His face went lax.

The next thing Rich knew, he was in bed. His hair felt damp, but his face was clean and he smelled like green apples. He was wearing his fuzzy monster pajamas. He had gotten them 4 years ago, so they're not very fuzzy anymore, but he couldn't bring himself to throw them out for some reason.... They still fit him, so he may as well keep them.

Rich yawned as he turned onto his side and scrubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"How'd you sleep?" Squip asked, softly.

"Sleepy," Rich murmured.

"Yeah? Wanna go back to sleep for a bit?"

"Nuh. Hungry."

"Alright, lets go find you something to eat, then."

Rich slid out of bed. He clumsily wrapped a blanket around his shoulders like a cape and looked towards his squip, looking for approval.

The squip smiled at him. "Are you a superhero, Rich?"

"Yeah! Super Rich!" Rich bounced on the balls of his feet, excitedly.

"Okay, Super Rich. Let's go to the kitchen and get something for your superhero tummy!"

Rich smiled widely and ran to the kitchen, sliding across the floor in his socks. He climbed onto the counter and looked in the cabinet for the cookies.

"No," the squip said sternly. "Put them back and get off the counter."

Rich pouted, but obeyed. "I want cookies! Please, Froggy?"

"Maybe later, bud. Why don't you have some fruit for now? That's much better for superheroes!"

Rich opened the fridge and grabbed a peach and some grapes. He washed them both and took a big bite of his peach, giggling when the juice ran down his face.

"Eat that over the sink," the squip said. "You don't want to get your pajamas all gross and sticky, do you?"

Rich shook his head no quickly and stood over the sink to eat his snack.

"Movie now?" Rich asked after he washed his hands and face.

"Absolutely. Let's go."

Rich ran back to his room and his squip helped him put the movie on. Rich sat up in bed, watching the movie intently.

"Again!" He chanted when it ended. "Again, Froggy!"

The squip sighed. It has a feeling this is going to be little Rich's favorite movie. It doesn't know how much it'll be able to handle watching the same movie on repeat, but if it makes Rich happy...it'll just have to deal with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> btw: rich couldn’t/doesn’t want to get rid of the pajamas because his mom gave them to him the last birthday he saw her before she left


End file.
